Covid chaos in Sarajevo, it reminds of Bergamo: Doctors worry people will start dying in the streets

Photo: Tanjug/AP/Kemal Softic

Coronavirus is rapidly spreading in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) as the healthcare system there has been overburdened for days. In the last 24 hours, 824 new cases were registered in the Sarajevo Canton, as nine people lost the battle with Covid. People wait for hours to get examined, and the hospitals are full.

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Authorities and health experts are warning that the situation is constantly deteriorating and is reminiscent of that in Bergamo, Italy, in the beginning of the pandemic.

Yesterday, the prime minister of the Sarajevo Canton, Edin Forto, warned that Sarajevo is the biggest hotspot in Europe. Previously, the Crisis HQ of the Sarajevo University Clinical Center (KCUS) declared a state of emergency and suspended the use of annual leave by employees, until further notice.

Yesterday, an alarming warning arrived from KCUS, who said they only had oxygen left for two more days.

"The situation is extremely difficult. We refueled oxygen in all silos and bottles last night, but the consumption is huge. The quantities we have now will last 48 hours," the general director of KCUS told Hayat TV.

People are concerned

Citizens say they are concerned. Those who got infected testify that they had to wait for hours to get examined.

"There's a feeling of alarm all over the city. Some streets are now eerily empty in the evening. People are scared. A vast majority has now become aware of the large number of the dead and infected, of course, there are 'rebels', conspiracy theorists, but most people understand the seriousness of the situation. Of course, there are individuals who violate the measures with their irresponsible behavior and do not care about the safety of others," Sarajevo resident Admir told the Vecernji List newspaper.

Health expert Dr. Jasenko Karamehic told Avaz that the escalation of the situation in BiH is not surprising to him, and that he was announcing a strong wave of infection a month ago.

Referring to the difficult situation, Dr. Karamehic suggests even stricter lockdowns and urgent procurement of vaccines. Otherwise, he says, the hospitals will soon be overcrowded, and people will, he believes, just like last year in Bergamo, start dying in the streets.

"In order to avoid being like Bergamo, to prevent people dying in the streets because the hospitals are full, we need to procure a large number of vaccines. To cover at least two thirds of the population. Therefore, one and a half million citizens should be vaccinated as soon as possible," the doctor believes.

He says it is necessary to tighten controls.

"I announced this months earlier. A country that has open borders, that does not control who enters it, with no PCR or rapid tests, a large number of people entering and leaving without, almost, any control. We are the only country in the world that does not control its borders. It was the winter season now, ski resorts were full, there were a lot of tourists from other countries," Karamehic told Avaz.

(Telegraf.rs)